Visakha

When the average person talks about the hardest mountain to climb, they immediately think of Mt. Everest. But being the tallest mountain in the world doesn’t automatically make it the hardest. In fact, as far as technical climbing goes, Mt. Everest is a relatively easy ascent.

While these peaks may look pretty in postcards, some of the mountains on this list will make Everest’s 4.4% fatality rate look like a stroll in the park. Here are the 10 hardest mountains to climb in the world:

1. Annapurna

While Annapurna’s highest peak stands at 8,091 meters, making it only the 10th highest mountainin the world – based on fatality statistics, it is perhaps the most difficult mountain to climb in the world. It has the highest fatality rate of any of the famed 8,000 meter summits.

With improved safety standards in modern climbing, the fatality rate stands at around 19.7% since 1990 – but that’s still 1 in 5 climbers who never make it home.

2. Nanga Parbat

Many consider it the hardest climb in the world because of the south face, which at 15,000 ft is thehighest mountain face in the world. Mountaineers refer to it as the “Man Eater”. Before Austrian climber Herman Buhl conquered it in 1953, Nanga Parbat took 31 lives from climbers who had previously attempted it.

3. K2

While similar in height, K2 is a much more technically difficult climb than Everest because of the dangerous obstacles posed by ice pillars, seracs, and glaciers. The frozen composition of the mountain often poses threats to climbers in terms of sudden collapse and movement. The weather on K2 also tends to be extremely unpredictable, making the summit and descent all the more dangerous.

4. Kangchenjunga

Death rates have remained high, climbing to 22% in some recent years. This is a reflection of the danger posed by the unpredictable weather, ice, and avalanches.

5. Baintha Brakk

The combination of a steep, craggy granite tower and high altitude mean that only the world’s highest level mountaineers have any chance of making it to the peak.

6. The Eiger

7. Vinson Massif

In recent years, the availability of professionally guided ascents have made Mt. Vinson Massif much more assessible to climbers. However, the extreme cold and unpreditable weather of Antarctica – even in the summer – still make climbing Mt. Vinson a dangerous endeavor.

8. The Matterhorn

9. Fitz Roy

But what Mt. Fitz Roy lacks in height, it makes up for in technical difficulty. Its sheer granite faces presents a challenge to even the most skilled climbers. To make things even more dangerous, it is extremely isolated and located in an area with exceptionally treacherous weather. While on certain days, as many as a 100 people might reach the summit of Everest, Fitz Roy might only see a single successful climb each year.

10. McKinley